April 11, 2009
CLARKSTON, Wash. - The Huskies delivered in a big way on Saturday, sweeping all 10 races against Washington State on the Snake River. "We were lucky that the weather was good for rowing," said Director of Rowing and women's head coach Bob Ernst. "It looked like it would be stormy early this morning, but then it smoothed out just in time for the races and now it's sunny." The day started with a men's varsity eight race. Washington State's crew is a club team, so the Husky varsity eight could not compete against the Cougars. Instead, Washington raced its third and fourth varsity eights. The Husky boats took both first and second against the Cougs, with the first Washington boat beating WSU by open water. The women's novices were up next. The Husky novices continued their winning ways, downing the Cougars by several length of open water to remain undefeated on the season. Washington finished the race in 7:09.3, while Washington State crossed the line in 7:40.3. The men's freshmen raced third, picking up a seven-second victory over the Cougars. Washington's second freshman eight won the contest, finishing in 6:17.11. Wazzu's first freshman boat crossed in 6:24.9, followed by their second novice boat 45 seconds later. At 9:30am, the featured race began. The Huskies had fallen to the Cougars the last three years, including last year on Montlake Cut. The two women's eights lined up on the Snake River, the No. 6 Huskies out for revenge. Washington got out to a good start, overpowering the Cougars early and never giving up position. The Huskies won the race handily, completing the course in 6:42.96, nearly two full seconds ahead of Wazzu. "This is what I would call a good business trip," remarked Ernst. "The team performed when they needed to, even though there were mistakes here and there. I don't think we could have had a more successful trip than that, especially when you come out to someone else's course. I told the team before we made the trip that in order for us to be a good team, we've got to be a good traveling team, and that means beating other good teams on their home courses." "Now we've got to get ready for California on April 25 at home," added Ernst. "We haven't beaten them in a long time. So it's back to training for the next two weeks." A few minutes later, Washington's defending national champion four took to the water, defeating the Cougars in dramatic fashion. The Huskies took an early lead they never relinquished, besting Washington State by open water, crossing the finish line in 7:35, 10 seconds ahead of WSU. Washington's second varsity four took third in just over eight minutes, with the Cougs' second four six seconds behind. The women's second varsity eights raced next, with Washington taking a five-second victory over Washington State, keeping their unbeaten streak alive. The Huskies finished the contest in 6:45.91, just one second off the Washington State first varsity time. The men's third varsity four was the seventh race on the docket. Washington notched a convincing open water victory. The Huskies crossed the finish in 7:01.26, with the Cougars following at 7:32.57. The women's second novice eight was the last race before the break. Washington earned another dominating win over the Cougars, completing the course in 7:18.7, several lengths ahead of Washington State. Wazzu pulled across the line in 8:02.7. After a half-hour break, the last two men's races got underway. First up were the men's freshman fours. The Husky first freshman four defeated the Cougars by open water, clocking a time of 6:54.55. The Cougars' boats made it across the line in 7:44.21 and 8:03.42. The final race of the day was the men's varsity four. Washington raced a four `A' and a four `B', both of which took open water wins over Washington State. The first Husky boat finished the course in 6:29.61 and the second Husky crew finished in 6:39.85. The Cougs crossed the line in 6:59.91. Washington's sixth-ranked women are off next weekend, while the third-ranked men head to Belmont, Calif. to face No. 2 Wisconsin next Friday, April 17 and No. 5 Stanford next Saturday, April 18. For the complete schedule and results, log on to GoHuskies.com.
WASHINGTON AT WASHINGTON STATE DUAL RACE RESULTS
Women's Varsity Eight
Women's Second Varsity Eight
Women's Novice Eight
Women's Second Novice Eight
Women's Varsity Four
UW `B'
Men's Varsity Eight
Fourth Varsity Eight
Men's Freshman Eight
Men's Varsity Four
UW `B'
Men's Third Varsity Four Men's Freshman Four |
